I am in Europe and from what I've gathered, ESL teacher salaries here are enough to get by on. I heard conditions are better in Korea as there is the potential to save if you get the right school. So now I'm curious where do ESL Teachers in Japan fit? Are they closer to Korea, Europe, or smack in the middle. Will you just make enough to get by living in Japan or will you have a saving potential with your salary? Does it of course depend on the school that hires you? How do you go about landing a job with some of the better schools? Where is it good to work, Tokyo or other cities? Thanks in advance who can answer these questions and give me an idea.

Japan is by far the highest paying country for ESL. Korea is not far behind though, and the salaries are very close. I have been here awhile and it depends what school you work for. The Highest paying are private AET companies where you make between 250 and 300 000 yen per month. It's enough to live on and save over 50 000 yen per month if you are careful. Japan is the best country if you want to save money. It depends what you are after.

If you want to save money, Japan Korea or Taiwan are the best. If you want an easy going, slow paced life then, SE Asia is best.

I agree with Stranger101 about Japan being the country with the highest salaries for ESL. I have only worked as an English teacher in Canada and Japan but colleagues who had worked in other countries before working in Japan have shared their experiences about work in other countries and in general they were so much better off once working in Japan. Teachers are respected more in Japan than in some other countries and working conditions are generally better. If you are lucky enough to hold a full time job teaching English at a school and also be able to teach some private students in your spare time it can be quite lucrative. I have heard some schools have been losing students due to the recent economy and have actually asked teachers to leave but when the economy does turn the demand for qualified English teachers will take another jump. If Tokyo gets the 2016 Olympics too you'll definitely want to be here in the years leading up to that. The city will want its employees to speak English to visitors and just like in Nagano for the '98 Winter Olympics there will be a spike in the number of teaching positions in the years leading up to the games. Fingers crossed for Tokyo 2016!

I've heard some dream-like teaching situations, but I've also heard the worst stories all from JET teachers.

What I did was: come here (Japan) on a visitor visa, walk in to as many English schools as you can, drop off a resume, talk to the owner/manager, tell them you can start the next day.
If you can't find a job that way then you have a deeper problem which needs attention lol_________________マンツーマン 英会話 神戸 三宮 リアライズ - James